


Whumptober 2020 - 01 - Shackled

by DinerGuy



Series: Whumptober 2020 [1]
Category: Magnum P.I. (TV 2018)
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Gunshot, Handcuffs, Hurt/Comfort, Teamwork, Whump, Whumptober 2020, shackled, taken captive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:08:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26766301
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DinerGuy/pseuds/DinerGuy
Summary: In the end, her partner had been taken as leverage and, the last Higgins had seen, had been dragged off bleeding amidst threats of worse injury if she didn't do as ordered.
Series: Whumptober 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1950892
Comments: 17
Kudos: 48





	Whumptober 2020 - 01 - Shackled

"I've held up my end of the deal. Now, where is my partner?"

The other woman lifted an eyebrow and studied Higgins for a moment longer, evaluating the P.I.'s icy cold stare, then nodded and waved a hand in a gesture to someone currently out of sight.

Higgins heard the shuffle of footsteps from off to the right and turned as several figures appeared through the far doorway.

Even though she had mentally prepared herself for what condition her partner was likely in after having been shot and taken hostage for an extended period of time, she still had to fight back a shocked gasp at Magnum's appearance.

His face was pale and drawn, and the man who was holding onto his upper arm seemed to be supporting him as much as dragging him along. Magnum's hands were cuffed together in front of him, and Higgins could hear the muffled sound of the restraints as his free hand hung loosely in front of him—it would likely be hanging at his side if not for the cuffs.

The white button-down shirt he was wearing, which had been clean and crisp when they'd started out the previous morning, was now smudged and dirty from wherever the criminals had kept him while he was their prisoner. But what really drew Higgins' attention was how Magnum's entire left side was stained and bloody.

It appeared his captors had either given him first aid or at least provided the supplies for him to patch himself up, and Higgins just hoped they'd given him  _ something _ for the pain. Thoughts of what he must have gone through over the past day chased the terrible imaginings of blood loss, infection, sepsis, and every other outcome of an untreated gunshot wound through Higgins' mind. She could see the way Magnum looked pale and gaunt, the way he was breathing raggedly, the way sweat was beading on his brow, and she swallowed hard. From what she could see, he appeared to be in intense pain, even past his attempts to hide it. There was no doubt what he was actually feeling was much worse.

But she knew she had to stay in control of herself at the moment; the situation was too volatile for her to let her emotions take over, but she had the sudden urge to shoot every single one of the people responsible and let  _ them  _ bleed out with no help. There was no doubt in Higgins' mind that Rick and T.C. were thinking the same thing from where they were waiting just out of sight.

It had been what seemed like a simple enough case—but really, when were they ever?—until the woman who was their most likely suspect for the particular criminal enterprise they had stumbled across had proven just how ruthless she was. The ambush had been well-orchestrated, and the criminals had taken immediate advantage of the element of surprise they'd had in one particular moment the afternoon before.

In the ambush, Magnum had been shot in the side, and Higgins hadn't been able to take on half a dozen opponents. In the end, her partner had been taken as leverage and, the last Higgins had seen, had been dragged off bleeding amidst threats of worse injury if she didn't do as ordered.

Magnum had given her a determined look that Higgins knew meant for her not to give in to the goons. However, the way his attempt to antagonise their captors into some sort of slip-up, most likely so he could take advantage of the situation, had been rewarded with a hard cuff across the side of the head had made Higgins clench her fists and snap out her agreement. She'd been sure Magnum would have argued had he been more than semi-conscious, but she had no other choice in the matter. Of course, she'd known she could get Rick and T.C.'s help—perhaps even Detective Katsumoto's—but she'd had to ensure the criminals kept Magnum alive until she could figure something out.

And now, here she was, a small thumb drive clenched in her fist and the knowledge that she had backup nearby. Rick was perched in the adjacent warehouse with a sniper rifle—and how he managed to have one at such ready access, she wasn't about to ask—and T.C. was waiting just outside. They'd called Katsumoto on their way, deciding it was better to ask forgiveness than permission for the plan they'd formulated, which meant HPD would be there before long as well.

Higgins just had to stall until Rick could take the shot, and then they'd have to move fast to rescue their friend.

"Now, then, the files?" The woman cleared her throat and held out a hand.

Higgins flipped the drive around in her fingers a few times as if evaluating the scene in front of her. "Release my partner first, and then it's yours."

But the woman shook her head. "Not until I verify the information. You're a smart woman, Ms. Higgins. I'm sure you can appreciate my being cautious." She leveled a serious look at Higgins and then cleared her throat. "You don't want to push us, trust me."

The man holding Magnum drew a gun from his waistband. He waved it threateningly as if to underscore his boss's words before pressing the barrel to the side of his prisoner's head and sneering at Higgins.

Higgins glanced back at Magnum, and their eyes met. They'd worked together long enough that she immediately knew what he was thinking, but she didn't have time to tell him how incredibly stupid the idea was before several things happened at once.

The gunman moved the gun, apparently to wave it around again, and Magnum made his move. He yanked against the man's grip and ducked his head at the same time, then headbutted the goon right in the stomach.

As the gunman doubled over, a shot rang out, and the second henchman who had been following behind Magnum and the man holding him fell to the ground, a pistol slipping from his hand.

Higgins was briefly distracted as the woman darted across the open space of the warehouse towards the door, but a quick glance at where her partner was struggling to get up from where he'd collapsed on the floor had her abandoning the chase. T.C. was outside, she knew, and the man Magnum had rammed had recovered and was now bringing his gun up to bear on the fallen P.I. again.

Before Higgins could draw her own weapon, another shot from Rick's rifle dropped the gunman. She rushed over to kick the gun away from the man's limp hand, then moved quickly to help her partner.

"Hey, Higgy." Magnum grinned up at her as she put a hand on his shoulder.

"Magnum, are you okay? How bad is it?" Higgins was trying to evaluate the severity of his injury as she helped him settle back into something of a seated position on the concrete floor. She moved to check the dead gunman's pockets, hoping to find the key to the handcuffs and was rewarded a moment later when her fingers brushed against a small piece of metal.

"Ah, I've had worse," Magnum replied casually, although the wince when he shrugged belied his tone and words.

Higgins frowned and shook her head as she unlocked his cuffs. "Shh, just sit still," she urged, removing the shackles and setting them to the side. "Here, let me see that."

Wincing again as the movement aggravated his side, Magnum waved her off. "I'm fine. It's just'a scratch."

The way his words were running together wasn't lost on Higgins.

"Nice try," came T.C.'s voice from behind them.

Seeing Magnum's eyes flick upwards, Higgins turned and saw their friend striding towards them. The question must have been evident on her face because he nodded.

"Don't worry; she didn't get far. HPD is here; Katsumoto already took her into custody." Then he turned his attention back to Magnum. "That was really dumb, bro," he remarked.

Magnum blinked. "Hey! I thought it was pretty heroic." He grinned. "Just like a White Knight story."

His friends rolled their eyes, and T.C. laughed out loud.

"Okay, White Knight," he replied. "Just like still, okay? Paramedics should be pulling up outside any minute."

Magnum turned to look at Higgins, still crouched over him. "Help me out here, Higgy."

"Don't look at me," she chuckled. "You know very well what I'm about to say."

"Fine," he huffed. "Where's Rick? He'll back me up."

As if on cue, Rick jogged through the doorway. He shook his head at Magnum's question. "Hey now," he remarked with a good-natured roll of his eyes. "I did back you up—or did you miss that whole part just now where I just took out multiple hostiles and saved your life?—but in an argument with TC about you doing something stupid? You're on your own there, man."

The others laughed as Magnum put on an exaggerated pout, but then the uniformed medics joined them, and Higgins, Rick, and T.C. had to step back to make room for the men to work. But, as they did so, they all breathed a sigh of relief. Thomas Magnum had more lives than a cat, but he hadn’t even lost one today. They were going to be okay.

**Author's Note:**

> I was originally going to try to write something for every prompt like last year, but thanks to a whole lot of RL stress, words are just not my friends lately. (Plus it didn't help that so many of this year's prompts were the same as last year.) I'll be posting a few fills this month, though, so I hope you all enjoy regardless.


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